Mathieu Cordang

Biography

Cordang started racing in 1893, after he left a boat in Vlissingen were a cycling race was being held. Cordang borrowed a bicycle and won the race, and decided to become a cyclist.

In 1894, Cordang set a world record for the mile on a tandem, and finished second in the Dutch National Road Race Championships behind Jaap Eden. One year later, he raced against the train between Maastricht and Roermond, and won. Cordang won the amateur 100 km motor-paced world championship in 1895 in Köln.

From 1896 to 1900, Cordang was a professional cyclist. In 1897 he finished second in Paris–Roubaix, after he fell in the velodrome in Roubaix, and later winner Maurice Garin did not wait for him, and won the race by thirty meters. Also in 1897, he rode Bordeaux-Paris, sponsored by Gladiator; a team was built around him, and 25 bicycles were available to him during this race. He finished in second place, behind Gaston Rivierre who had extra help in the form of a car. In the same year, Cordang broke five world records on the track of The Crystal Palace in London.

During the Bol d'Or in 1900, Cordang set a 24-hour record of 999.651 km. After that, Cordang won the 3 km race during the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris. This event included professional cyclists, so it is not considered official by the International Olympic Committee.

Cordang ended his career after this. According to his grandson, he stopped because he was cheated upon too many times. Cordang became the owner of a garage company. Cordang died in 1942, but this went by largely unnoticed. When a namesake died in 1962, the Dutch press printed obituaries for Cordang.

Palmares

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